A spokeswoman for Spain’s Health Ministry today confirmed to The Spain Report that “at least 10″ Ebola tests have been carried out on people in Spain since April, far more than were previously known about: “and they likely won’t be the last”, she said.

"The tests have all been carried out to discount the possibility of Ebola Virus in the person with possible symptoms”.

Asked why Spain’s Health Ministry had not previously made all the “at least 10″ cases public, the spokeswoman said: “the World Health Organisation does not say countries must communicate every possible case or test,” adding that: “other countries do not do so either”.

She could not provide details of which Spanish cities or regions the other tests had taken place in, or when they had taken place.

“Obviously if a test gave a positive result, we would tell people about it”.

Following complaints by medical and Civil Guard trade unions that their staff might not be fully prepared for an Ebola outbreak in Spain, in terms of protocol training and resource availability, the spokeswoman said that Spain’s Health Ministry is: “happy with the level of preparedness and protocol awareness” in Spanish hospitals, which are normally the responsibility of Spain’s 17 regional governments.

She said, however, that no special instructions had been sent to regional health authorities, despite complaints by healthcare workers in Madrid last month that the specialist pandemic emergency ward at Madrid’s Carlos III Hospital needed to be prepared in a hurry following its closure due to regional government cutbacks: “All Spanish regions are prepared to deal with possible Ebola cases, negative pressure chambers are not necessary”.

A spokeswoman for Spain’s Health Ministry today confirmed to The Spain Report that “at least 10″ Ebola tests have been carried out on people in Spain since April, far more than were previously known about: “and they likely won’t be the last”, she said.

"The tests have all been carried out to discount the possibility of Ebola Virus in the person with possible symptoms”.

Asked why Spain’s Health Ministry had not previously made all the “at least 10″ cases public, the spokeswoman said: “the World Health Organisation does not say countries must communicate every possible case or test,” adding that: “other countries do not do so either”.

She could not provide details of which Spanish cities or regions the other tests had taken place in, or when they had taken place.

“Obviously if a test gave a positive result, we would tell people about it”.

Following complaints by medical and Civil Guard trade unions that their staff might not be fully prepared for an Ebola outbreak in Spain, in terms of protocol training and resource availability, the spokeswoman said that Spain’s Health Ministry is: “happy with the level of preparedness and protocol awareness” in Spanish hospitals, which are normally the responsibility of Spain’s 17 regional governments.

She said, however, that no special instructions had been sent to regional health authorities, despite complaints by healthcare workers in Madrid last month that the specialist pandemic emergency ward at Madrid’s Carlos III Hospital needed to be prepared in a hurry following its closure due to regional government cutbacks: “All Spanish regions are prepared to deal with possible Ebola cases, negative pressure chambers are not necessary”.